


Safe With Me

by imagineaworldlike



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M, Gunshot Wounds
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-05
Updated: 2019-12-01
Packaged: 2020-07-31 12:13:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20114926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imagineaworldlike/pseuds/imagineaworldlike
Summary: Scarlet has a deep secret and a tattoo on her wrist she never lets anyone see. When she witnesses an attempted murder at the Hawkins Fourth of July Fair, she feels compelled to help despite not having a clue what she’s getting herself into. She doesn’t know it then, but that decision would change her life and the man she saved forever.





	1. Savior

**Author's Note:**

> First of all I just want to say that this is the first fanfic I’ve ever posted so if it’s horrible I’m sorry. I’ve had this idea with Alexei playing in my head since I finished ST3 and I want to continue it and see where it goes. If you haven't finished season 3, there are slight spoilers ahead. Also, I don’t own any of the characters except Scarlet :)
> 
> Any italics in the text indicate Russian dialogue being spoken.
> 
> I have also posted this on my Tumblr, imagineaworldlike, and I will be uploading in both places.

As I walked through the fair alone, I took in the many sights and sounds that surrounded me. Children were running and screaming from ride to ride, parents were either following their children or keeping to themselves, and the volume of the music around me was deafening. The thousands of flashing lightbulbs in just as many colors around the booth signs were enough to give me a slight headache.

Rather than focus on those, I looked at the people around me, obviously having the best night of their summer. I did have to admit, this was the best event Hawkins had seen in years. I had been born and raised in the small town, and now being twenty-two I had no plans on leaving. Despite being comfortable here, I had always isolated myself and didn’t have many friends, which explained why I was the only person walking alone through the crowded fair.

I was wise enough not to waste my money on the games, but fresh cooked kettle corn was a different story. The wait in line seemed to take way longer than it should have, but I was in no rush. As I walked away, kettle corn in hand, I passed by an aisle of games I was sure no one could ever win. Ping-pong ball toss, balloon darts, timed free-throws; all crowded with children and a few of the more watchful parents.

A loud pop caused me to jump mid-step and look immediately to my right. Someone had actually hit a balloon with a dart. I took a few steps closer to see who the lucky child was. I was surprised to see a man standing before the booth, another dart in his hand. He took his aim and POP, another balloon deflated to the cheers of the surrounding children. The man raised his hands above his head in triumph and turned to smile at all the kids reaching for high fives. He looked up and for the briefest second our eyes met. The man wasn’t much older than me, and I was surprised to find that he was actually quite handsome. The smile spread across his face lit up his eyes behind his glasses and his dark, curly hair hung messy over his forehead. In an instant he was once again facing the booth, picking out his prize. I smiled to myself and continued walking.

I checked my watch and saw that it was just after 10:00pm, and even though I wasn’t tired I considered finishing my small bag of popcorn and turning in for the night. In the few seconds I was looking down at my watch I felt someone solid bump into my arm, causing me to drop what amount of food remained in the bag I was holding. I turned to confront the person, but found that they were quickly walking away. It was a tall man with buzzed hair wearing dark clothing which made him look very out of place. He didn’t even so much as turn in my direction.

“Hey!” I called angrily after him, but he just kept walking like he didn’t hear me. I decided that it wasn’t worth the struggle, and instead picked up my food from the ground at my feet. I was in such a sour mood that I didn’t even want to finish it, so I dropped the bag in the nearest trashcan and decided to just go home.

I took one last look behind me at the man, and saw that he had something in his right hand. As I looked closer, I recognized it as a pistol with a silencer attached to the barrel. He was holding it level, pointing it at the person in front of him as he continued to walk. I saw a slight recoil in his hand and realized with horror that he had shot and nobody had even heard. The man walked quickly away and I was able to see for the first time who he had been aiming at.

I was awestruck to find it was the man who had won the balloon darts. He was now clutching a giant Woody Woodpecker plushie that he had chosen as his prize, and his face was contorted in pain and confusion. The breath caught in my throat as he dropped the toy and I saw the subtle spread of blood across the front of his white button-down shirt. He reached his hand up to touch the wound, not seeming to fully believe it himself. I watched as he began to stumble upon seeing his hand covered in his own bright red blood.

Suddenly, a shorter man rushed up to him with a corndog in each hand. I could make out that he was yelling, probably the man’s name, and he dropped the corndogs on the ground to support his friend. I watched as they both stumbled off between two food stands.

It was in that moment that the world came back into focus for me. All of the people moving around me, the loud music and yelling, it all became too much and blurred my vision. Without even thinking, my feet were moving in the direction the two men had went. I broke out into a jog, pushing past and maneuvering around the crowd before me.

I spotted them within seconds, the man who had been shot was sitting in the grass with his back against a wall while the other man tore off his button down and pressed it against the wound, leaving himself in a white tank. As I approached I heard the shorter man talking, but it didn’t sound like English. He stood and spun on his heel, looking like he was about to take off running.

“I can help.” I stated as I moved past him and knelt down before the man. His breathing was becoming shallow and his grip on the other man’s shirt was already loosening. He managed to glance up at me over his glasses, but his head immediately hung back down in exhaustion.

“Keep pressure on it! I have to go find Jim!” The other man shouted before running off into the mass of bodies just feet away. I watched him go then turned my attention back to the man before me. I wasn’t entirely sure why I was doing this and involving myself in such a seemingly dangerous situation, but something just told me I needed to help.

“Alright, this is probably going to hurt, a lot,” I said as I prepared myself. I moved the other man’s shirt away and lifted up his own so I could actually see the wound, sitting as close to him on my knees as I possibly could. I figured my best bet was to remove the bullet before healing the wound itself; it wasn’t going to do any good staying inside him.

As I mentally prepared myself, a pit formed in my stomach. It had been years since I had done anything like this, and being in public where I was close to so many people was a huge risk. I had vowed to never do this again, but one look at the man before me and that notion was out the window. He groaned and I could tell that he was fading fast; if I didn’t start now it would be too late.

With my right hand, I placed my open palm inches above his wound. I focused on the blood steadily pouring out and imagined the bullet slowly backtracking out of his flesh. I could feel a humming vibration all over my body and I knew it was working even though I couldn’t see the bullet yet.

The man began to squirm and foreign curses escaped his lips. His eyes were tightly shut and he threw his head back, colliding with the wall. I knew it had to be the most pain he had ever felt, but I couldn’t focus on his pain. I had to save him. Maybe if he passed out it would be easier for both of us.

I closed my eyes and focused harder, clenching my teeth together as I found the strength to draw the bullet out. I slowly opened my eyes and saw the end of the piece of metal poking through the hole in his stomach. I pushed harder within myself and in an instant I felt the warm, slick metal in my hand as I closed my fist around it. The man took a deep, ragged breath and managed to lift his head to look at my hand. I opened it and showed him the bullet covered in blood.

“_Holy shit_.” I heard him mumble in his language, and I could guess what he meant as I dropped the bullet onto the ground next to us. I involuntarily sniffed my nose and looked up at the sky above us, taking in a gulp of air. I couldn’t make out the stars for all the lights, but I knew there was a full moon up there somewhere. Looking back down at the man, I found him staring back up at me awestruck. His wound was still bleeding and I knew I needed to finish what I started.

“This part should be easier.” I told him, knowing he more than likely had no idea what I was saying. This time I placed both of my hands over his abdomen and began to focus my energy on stopping the bleeding and closing the wound. I heard muffled voices behind me and realized the other man had come back.

“What the fuck..” I heard his voice and the gasp of a woman, but I ignored them and kept my attention on the man before me. I watched as blood stopped pouring out of him and the flesh around the hole closed itself from the inside out.

‘Perfect.’ I thought. His skin was slightly red where the gunshot had been, but it was healed and he was alive. I smiled and put my hands down into my lap, breathing heavily. The man looked down at himself and touched where a moment ago had been a fatal gunshot. He looked back up to his friend with a look of wonder.

“_Murray, I’ve been healed! I don’t know how.._” He looked from his friend to me as he sat up a bit straighter.

“How in the hell did you do that?” The man asked in disbelief. I couldn’t find it in me to answer in that moment. I had hoped to heal him and leave before anyone saw my deepest secret.

Instead of answering, I put my left hand up above my head and rested it against the wall before me, leaning forward with my head down to catch my breath. I reached up with my other hand to wipe away the small amount of blood trickling from my nose. I felt the many braided bracelets I wore slide down closer to my elbow on my left arm and the woman behind me gasped again. My head immediately shot up and turned to face her.

“You’re one of them,” she said breathlessly and nodded toward the tattoo on my wrist. “You have powers, I should’ve known…” Everyone’s eyes moved to the ‘006’ printed on the skin of my wrist.


	2. Safe With Me

I instinctively pulled my hand down and hid it behind my back, my normal response whenever someone questioned me about it. 

“How do you know about that?” I asked defensively. I was shocked that someone else knew what my tattoo meant. 

“I.. I know another girl, Eleven,” she responded. My eyes grew wide in disbelief. There were others like me here in Hawkins? There were that many of us? A million other questions raced through my mind, but the man in shorts spoke before I could.

“Look, this is fascinating and all, but in case you have forgotten, Joyce, evil Russians are after us and not afraid to kill! Now, we need to get to the car, get Jim, and LEAVE.” They both moved toward the man still sitting in the grass next to me and I stood, slightly lightheaded. The man I had healed attempted to get up, but wasn’t able to on his own. 

“Um, he’s going to be weak for a few hours, but he’ll be fine.” I was still in shock over the entire situation and wasn’t exactly sure what to do. Both of them reached under his arms to lift him up and support him as they walked between the stands to the parking lot. I followed and overheard their conversation.

“Murray, we can’t exactly infiltrate a Russian base with Alexei in this state.” Joyce said in a low voice.

Russian base? I had heard the man say something about evil Russians a moment ago, but it didn’t register until right then. Was this man, Alexei, Russian? And if he was, why were other evil Russians trying to kill him?

“I realize that. But we can’t just leave him somewhere defenseless for them to find again. He’s now seen as a traitor to the Soviet Union and he’s still considered an enemy of the State! We don’t have time to take him back to my place-“

“I’ll take him.”

For the second time that night, I wasn’t sure why I was getting involved in someone else’s business, but something in me told me I had to. All three of them turned in unison to face me, surprised that I had even followed. 

“What?” Murray said, dumbfounded.

“I can take him to my house. I’ll be able to watch and take care of him while yall fight the Russians or whatever.” They didn’t look convinced, so I continued. “They won’t know where he is, they don’t know me so he’ll be safe. I can protect him.” Joyce looked over to the man like she was seriously considering my offer. 

“Look, we really don’t have time for this-“ Murray began and made to turn away from me.

“You don’t seem to have any other option.” I quipped. “The way I see it, you can take him or leave him somewhere to be killed and either way my hard work is thrown out the window. I know how to take care of him and whoever these evil Russians are won’t know where to find him if he’s with me.”

“Murray, I think this is our best option..” Joyce said. Alexei began to look very tired, like he was going to fall without their support.

“For Christ’s sake, he doesn’t even speak English!” Murray yelled, frustrated with all of us. 

“I don’t care!” I yelled back. I was surprised with how I was acting, but there was something about this man that I just couldn’t let go of. “It seems that none of us want him to die and this is your best option. You can come pick him up tomorrow or whenever you’re done with what you’re doing and go back to your lives.”

“Murray..” Joyce pleaded. She looked like she was about to fall from supporting Alexei’s weight. 

“Alright, fine, FINE! You can take him but I swear to God if anything happens to him it’s on you!”

“I promise he will be fine. Come on, my truck is this way.” We headed to my Ford and they helped Alexei into the front passenger seat. He looked ready to fall asleep at any second. I heard Murray hurriedly speaking to Alexei in Russian, probably discussing their change in plans. 

“I live on Salem, the brown house.” Joyce nodded and I climbed into the driver’s seat.

“I meant what I said, if anything happens to him..” Murray began, looking over at me from Alexei’s open door.

“Nothing will happen to him, now go kill some evil Russians.” Starting the truck I closed my door and Murray did the same. I put it in reverse and exited my spot. As I drove towards the main road, I looked over and saw Joyce storm up to Mayor Kline and punch him in the face before kneeing his groin. I did a double take to make sure that was in fact what I saw, not having a clue why she would do such a thing. I suppressed a laugh and turned onto the road, heading home. 

The drive was quiet despite the soft music coming from the radio. Alexei rested his head against the window and I thought for sure he was asleep, but he sat straight up when we pulled into my driveway fifteen minutes later. 

“Home sweet home,” I mumbled before turning my rumbling old truck off. My one story house wasn’t much, but it had always been my home. I did the best that I could with it, keeping the flowers watered out front and decorating the inside to reflect my own personal taste. 

I walked around to Alexei’s door and helped him out. He seemed to have regained a little bit of strength on the drive because he barely needed my help to walk into the house. I immediately locked the door behind us and walked him back to my bedroom, flicking on lights as we went.

Sitting him down on the bed, I stood back and pointed to his shirt, hoping he understood that he could take the blood-covered garment off. Without thinking, I reached forward to start undoing the buttons for him, but thought better of it and pulled my hands back. I wasn’t sure if he wanted me to help, so I began fidgeting with my bracelets and looked down. I wanted to make this as easy for him as I could, but I also didn’t want to overstep any boundaries.

“_You can take it off if you’d like_.” He spoke softly and when he didn’t reach for the buttons I took it as an invitation to do it myself. I quickly undid the small buttons and pulled the shirt off his shoulders as he watched me intently. I was slightly surprised to see toned arms and the faint outline of muscles across his chest and torso, but I forced my eyes away from staring and focused on making him comfortable. I tossed the shirt onto the floor and turned back to find him looking up at me with a kind expression. 

“_I can’t thank you enough for this._” I had no idea what he was saying, but he was smiling so I nervously smiled back. He really was handsome, with his curly hair and a genuine smile that made his whole face light up; I had to remind myself again to stop staring at him. 

“Um..” I motioned to his pants, which were covered in his blood as well and he seemed to understand. He unbuttoned them and lifted himself a bit to pull them down, letting them fall on the floor. I did my best not to look below his waistline out of respect, but I did notice his boxers also had blood covering the front of them. I turned to my dresser and pulled out an old pair of sweats that would fit him. After handing them over I turned around, hoping he understood that he could take his dirty underwear off and just wear those. 

After a few seconds I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to see him in just the sweats, boxers on the floor next to his pants. I smiled and reached behind him to pull back the bedsheets so he could lay down. As he made himself comfortable I walked to the light switch by the door and turned to face him.

“Good night, Alexei.” I flicked the switch and heard him mumble something in Russian. I walked out into my living room, turning off all the lights in my small house as I went. 

The couch was soft and inviting, and I flopped down without a blanket or pillow. I couldn’t be made to care that I was still in my regular clothes or that my shirt was spotted with Alexei’s blood; I was so tired I felt like I could sleep for days. Just before I dozed off I heard footsteps and a slight tap on my shoulder. Opening my eyes, I saw Alexei standing over me.

“Are you okay..?” He reached down and grabbed my hand, pulling me up. I followed him back into my bedroom where he laid down and pulled the sheets down on the other side of the bed, gesturing for me to lay down next to him.

I didn’t have to be told twice. The only light was coming from the full moon outside my window, so I quickly stripped off my shorts, shirt, and bra with my back to Alexei, putting on a bloodless shirt from the floor to sleep in. I climbed into my bed and made myself comfortable.

It was a strange feeling to have someone I didn’t even know in my bed next to me, but it was also comforting. Yes, Alexei seemed much stronger physically than I was and he did happen to be a Soviet, but regardless, he seemed like a teddy bear. I was surprised to find that I wasn’t afraid of him at all.

It didn’t take long for us to fall into a deep, sound sleep.


	3. Awkward Introductions

When I woke up, I found my head on Alexei’s chest and his arm wrapped around my back. I knew we must have ended up like that sometime in the night, but a part of me didn’t want to move. I felt so comfortable and safe next to Alexei; I wanted to enjoy this moment as long as I could.

I lifted my head up to look at him and found myself entranced by his sleeping face. Despite what he had just been through in the hours before, Alexei still looked peaceful as he slept. His head was tilted towards me and his other hand was draped across his stomach.

I gently rolled over onto my back and looked over at my clock. 7:13 am. I sighed. If I could help it, I generally tried to never wake up before 8:00 am.

I rolled back to face Alexei and found him stirring. He opened his eyes and blinked quickly, taking in his surroundings. His eyes landed on me, and I saw a slight smile on his face.

“_Good morning._” His voice was groggy but I could guess what he was saying.

“Good morning,” I replied with a smile.

That was when he realized his arm was wrapped around me. He looked over in surprise, and we both began to sit up.

“It’s alright,” I assured him, hoping he understood.

Without thinking, I hopped out of bed and walked towards the bathroom connected to my room. I noticed Alexei giving me a wide-eyed look, and I instantly remembered that I was just wearing a t-shirt and underwear. I felt my face grow hot and I froze, quickly spotting a pair of cut off jeans on the floor. I reached down and pulled them on as fast as I could, taking in a sigh of relief seeing Alexei hold back a laugh.

“Uh,” a small giggle escaped my lips and I looked back at my bathroom. “I’m sure you want a shower after last night..” He gave me a quizzical look but followed my gaze. I walked in and turned on the light, reaching up to get him a towel from the shelf. I motioned for him to come in, and watched as he easily got up from the bed and made his way to stand next to me.

The skin on his stomach looked perfect, not even a bruise; as though nothing, let alone a gunshot, had happened. I looked him over as he walked, noticing that he didn’t seem to be in any pain at all. I also noticed in the morning light just how defined the muscles covering his torso were, but I did my best not to make it obvious that I was gawking.

As Alexei stood in front of me, I handed the towel over to him. I smiled and moved past him out the door, closing it behind me. I went to my closet and pulled down a hoodie from a hanger and put it on over my t-shirt. Despite it now being July 5th and hot as hell outside, the cranking AC in my small house made it feel like winter inside. Picking up both of our clothes from the previous night and what had already been on my floor, I heard the shower turn on and the curtain slide on the rod. I walked our clothes out to the washing machine in the next room over, dropped them in, and almost started the machine.

Looking down as I was about to shut the lid, I saw a black wallet sticking out of the pocket of Alexei’s shirt. I pulled it out and held it in my hand as I turned the washer on. Looking over my shoulder to be sure the bathroom door was still closed, I opened the wallet and looked inside.

In the ID slot was a card with Alexei’s picture and a lot of Russian words I didn’t understand. As I examined the card, I was able to make out one line of text; Alexei Dimitriyevich Sokolov. I quickly realized it was his full name. I opened the cash pocket and wasn’t surprised to find it completely empty. There were a few other cards written in Russian in the other slots, and I slid them out only to confirm I couldn’t actually read them.

As I slid the last card back down, I noticed there was something else behind it. I pulled the paper into view and saw that it was a small photograph. It was a picture of a couple, probably in their fifties. Alexei bore a striking resemblance to the man, and it dawned on me that these must be his parents. They looked happy, standing in front of a large brick house with their arms wrapped around each other. His mother was beautiful.

My stomach growled, and it was then that I realized how hungry I was. I slowly slid the picture back into its place and closed his wallet, setting it on my unused ironing board. Part of me felt guilty for snooping on probably his only private item, but it wasn’t like I stole any information or money. I was just curious about him.

Walking to my kitchen, I thought about what I should make for breakfast. What did he even like? Did they have the same kind of breakfasts in Russia? I shook my head and decided to just make a normal breakfast; if he was hungry he would eat.

I turned on the stove, grabbed my skillet, put bread in the toaster, and took bacon and eggs from the fridge. Starting with the eggs, I quickly began to have tunnel vision on the food and nothing else. As soon as I finished making two, I put the eggs back in the fridge and grabbed the first batch of toast. As I put two more pieces in the toaster, I realized that I had forgotten to start the coffee. I rushed over to the machine and got a fresh pot going as the bacon continued to sizzle. Just as I finished, the bread popped out onto the counter behind me and I spun around to grab it.

I gasped as I turned and my jaw hung slightly open.

Alexei surprised me by standing in the kitchen doorway in nothing but his towel. 

I couldn’t help but stare. There were still beads of water covering his shoulders and chest. My eyes traveled down to his stomach and came to rest on the perfect v-shape his hips made that was partially covered by the towel. I knew I shouldn’t have been looking as openly as I was, but I couldn’t help it.

Alexei cleared his throat and my eyes immediately shot up to meet his. I closed my eyes for a second and when I opened them I smiled up at him. It was only then that I even realized he had put his glasses on.

“Hi.” Was all I could manage to say. Alexei breathed out a laugh and looked down.

“Hi.” He replied, looking up at me with a smirk.

The bacon kept popping and I looked over to find that it was ready to come off. I held up a finger to Alexei and rushed over to remove the skillet from the stove and put it on an empty burner. I then walked over to Alexei and gestured for him to follow me back to my room.

Opening the closet, I searched for anything that would fit him. I finally found a black Led Zeppelin shirt that looked like it would fit, and I turned to hand it to him. I dug through my dresser drawers for another pair of sweats, and found a longer pair that would probably fit him better than the ones he had slept in. As I left for him to change, I turned and pointed to the running washing machine in the room next door.

“I washed our clothes from last night.” He seemed confused at first, but then a look of recognition came over his face as he heard the clothes tumbling in the machine. He nodded his head and smiled. I hoped he truly did understand. I knew the blood would still stain his clothes, but at least they wouldn’t smell. Closing the door behind me, I walked back into the kitchen and started getting plates and utensils out for us to use.

Alexei came in a few moments later and I handed him a plate and a mug and he followed me in filling our plates with the food I had made. We both sat down at my small table and began to eat. We didn’t speak, being that we couldn’t understand each other anyway. As we ate, he would periodically look up at me and smile. He was just so damn cute that I couldn’t help but smile back.

A thought suddenly came to me; I knew his name, but I had never told him mine. I took a gulp of coffee and thought about the best way to go about this. Looking up, I reached towards him with my palm open. He looked confused, but interested.

“Alexei.” He met my eyes, still with confusion. “Alexei.” I repeated. “Your name is Alexei.” He sat up straighter, seeming to understand. He brought his own hand up to his chest.

“Alexei.”

“Yes!” He smiled and I moved my hand to my chest. “Scarlet.” He gave me an intense look before he spoke.

“_Your name is Scarlet,_” Alexei said softly. I recognized my name in his sentence, but I had no idea what else he had said.

“_Thank you, Scarlet_.” I gave him a big smile and nodded. I took a bite of bacon and saw Alexei grinning as he looked back down at his plate.

When we finished breakfast, I began washing the dishes while Alexei dried them. I didn’t ask him to, I normally didn’t even dry them, that’s why I had a drying rack. But when he grabbed a towel and stood next to me, taking the clean dishes from my hands, I couldn’t say no.

That was the first time I had actually noticed the height difference between us. He had to be a solid six feet at least, which made him seem like a giant next to my short 5’3” frame.

“Murray,” he whispered when we were almost finished with the dishes.

I glanced up at Alexei after he said the name, confused, and found him looking out the window above the sink. I stood on my tiptoes so I could see out to the driveway.

A green Ford Pinto had just pulled in behind my truck. I recognized Joyce and Murray climbing out of the front, but a teenage girl also got out of the back and all three of them began walking towards the door. I looked up at Alexei and sighed, knowing that my time with him was more than likely over.


	4. Where It All Began

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I wrote this chapter and the one following it all at once, but it is entirely too long to post as one chapter so it’s broken up into two. This one is a bit shorter than the others, but chapter five will be posted shortly after! As always, I hope you enjoy!

I opened my front door and stepped aside so the three of them could come in. Murray was first, followed by the young girl, then Joyce. Alexei walked over to sit on my loveseat, and I sat down next to him. The others took a seat across from us on the larger couch. For a moment, none of us spoke.

“_Alexei, I trust you’ve had a good night?_” Murray asked. The rest of us looked over to them. 

“_Yes, it’s been nice. Scarlet has been very kind to me._” I turned to Alexei upon hearing my name, and he gave me a small smile. 

“I thank you, Scarlet, for taking care of my friend, but I think you have some explaining to do.” Murray turned his attention to me and crossed his arms over his chest.

I had never told anyone my story, but I knew after last night I had to explain myself. And by the looks of it, they had brought the other girl, Eleven, with them. They all wore intense yet curious expressions, waiting for me to explain myself. I took a deep breath before I began. 

“What I did last night, healing, that’s only a part of what I can do. It, um.. it goes both ways.” I looked down at my fidgeting hands. realizing I had begun picking at my nails as I did whenever I was anxious.

“I can kill a man without even really thinking about it.” I whispered. Murray began quietly translating my words into Russian so Alexei could understand everything as well. I took another deep breath. 

“I guess I’ll just start at the very beginning, back when I first realized something was.. off about me. When I was ten, some kid really pissed me off on the playground at school because he knocked me off the swing. As he and his friends were laughing at me laying on the ground, I just imagined him being in so much pain like I was feeling.”

I looked up at Alexei and then back down. Something in me was telling me not to continue, and I realized that I was scared of what he would think of me more than what the others would once he knew what I had done and still could do. No one besides my dad knew and I was terrified of allowing my secret to be known. But I realized we were already past that point, they needed to know the full story now. I had made that choice last night when I decided to save Alexei. I glanced over and caught him giving me a slight, reassuring smile which was enough to encourage me to continue.

“In a second his nose was broken. I remember just looking at him laughing and hating him so much in that moment. And then his nose just bent up in an unnatural angle and started bleeding like crazy. He started screaming in pain and there was this big scene with the teachers. They wanted to know who did it, and the kid told them it was me but they couldn’t prove it and they never figured it out. I was in shock, and I knew somehow that I had done it but I didn’t understand any of it. I was scared, but I also wanted to know more about what I could do. I was so, so stupid back then.” I whispered the last part as I leaned forward and placed my head in my hands, taking a few seconds before I spoke again. 

“I tried out little things; pulling girl’s hair, pinching people, paper cuts, just to do it and test myself. A little over a year after the playground incident, once I started middle school, some girl took my notebook from my hand in the hallway just to throw it on the ground at my feet. Without even thinking I pictured her books thrown on the floor and her arms bent and broken. As she was walking away, she suddenly stopped and all her books fell to the floor. She started screaming and I watched as her forearms snapped. She fell and a bunch of people crowded around to watch.” I sat back up and looked at each of the faces staring back at me. Their faces had gone from apprehensive to looks of almost shock and awe. I looked back down at my nails which were now becoming ugly and sharp from being picked at.

“But I got scared. I ran over crying and held onto her arms as she screamed, wishing they would go back to normal. I guess I wanted it bad enough because her arms snapped right back into place and by the time the teachers got there you couldn’t tell what had happened. That time I did get in trouble. She told the teachers what happened, the truth, but they of course didn’t believe her so I just got in trouble for pushing her down and nearly causing a fight.” I looked up at the girl and I saw a look of understanding in her eyes. I knew that no matter what she had been through, we couldn’t have been all that different. 

“That was when I realized I could make these things happen to people and fix them if I wanted to. Healing had never even occurred to me, I just figured I had a great way of getting back at people who hurt me.” I smirked to myself, remembering how happy it used to make me knowing I could overcome anyone who came for me. If only I had known what it would have caused for me then.

“That was also when the lab somehow found out.”

I reached forward onto the coffee table to my pack of cigarettes and lit one up. Murray pulled a pack from his pocket and offered Alexei and Joyce one. They all passed the lighter between themselves as I continued. 

“My mom died while she was giving birth to me, so it had always just been me and my dad. One day when I was walking home from school a van pulled up next to me and some men pulled me in; cliche, right? I can remember wanting to hurt them, but they had a bag over my head. I’m still not sure, but I think I have to physically see the person I’m going at for it to work.” I took a drag and quickly blew it out.

“Anyway, they took me to Hawkins Lab, put me in a hospital gown, and locked me in a shitty bedroom for what seemed like forever. Then a doctor came in, Dr. Bennett or Brenner, or something like that. I remember being confused because he didn’t look like a doctor to me.” Eleven instantly stiffened upon hearing his name, which confirmed in my mind that she had suffered the same fate as me. 

“He asked me all these questions- about my mom, my dad, what happened at school. I thought I was in jail or an asylum, so I clammed up and wouldn’t talk to him. He told me everything was okay, that my dad even knew I was there, but that I couldn’t see him. He said something about how I needed help and guidance to control my powers, and he told me that I was valuable and that what I could do was more important than anything else. I didn’t understand, but I figured if my dad knew I was there then I needed to listen to these people.” I paused and took another drag of my cigarette, closing my eyes. “I was fucking eleven years old.”

“Papa was a bad man.” Eleven spoke for the first time and my eyes snapped open. I was taken aback by the name she used for the doctor. It quickly came flooding back to me that he had asked to be called that on numerous occasions, but I had always refused.

“I never called him that; I knew who my father was.” I leaned back onto the couch, pulling one of my legs underneath of me. “He asked me to show him what I could do, so I broke his nose. I wasn’t sure why then, but he made me so uncomfortable, and it felt good to hurt him. But then I had to heal him too, and he was astounded. I guess they had their proof that I was what they were looking for because the next day a different man came in and shaved my head against my will and gave me the tattoo.” I absentmindedly touched it on my wrist.

“Then the experiments began.”


	5. Moving On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You've been warned, this one is a tad bit longer than my other chapters, but this is also a pretty important part of the story and background. Enjoy :)

I leaned forward and put out my cigarette. They were all so tuned in to my story, barely even looking away from me. Part of me felt relieved, it was almost like therapy to finally speak about what I had gone through. But it was also terrible. I had pushed the memories so far down that bringing them back up was almost like reliving them all over again. After a brief moment I began again.

“At first I learned to enjoy it, what they had me do. ‘Cut this man’s arm, break his foot, bust her lip, now fix it’; part of me thought it was fun. I have always been intrigued by the human body, which makes sense considering what I can do to it. I was fascinated by how I could rip flesh apart and put it back together again without even touching it. The tasks got harder though, hurting was no problem, that I can do without barely thinking about it. But healing is much harder, that takes more of my energy and concentration. Like last night with Alexei, that was the first time in a decade I healed to that scale and I thought I was going to pass out.”

I looked over to Alexei who was still watching me intently. I was relieved to find that he didn’t look at me with disgust or fear like I had expected. Rather, he almost looked empathetic, like he wanted to take away all my pain and problems. I looked back down at my nails to find one now bleeding, and I quickly looked back up to the others while I silently healed the wound.

“Then one day they brought in a man, he looked terrified and I remember thinking that he didn’t belong there. And he spoke a different language, I now know that it was Russian. These bastards captured a Soviet, I don’t know if he was a spy or what, but they put him in a room with me, alone.” I leaned forward and grabbed another cigarette, lighting it and handing the pack to Alexei who looked like he could use another as well. 

“Dr. Brenner told me to cut his throat open, but that I wasn’t to heal him afterwards. I was afraid seeing how scared the man was, but I knew what happened when I refused an order, so I did it. He died three feet in front of me. I will never forget the look on his face as he died while his blood crept towards my feet on the floor. It was then that I decided I would never do it again. No matter what they did to me, I couldn’t hurt an innocent person again.” I paused and took a deep breath, closing my eyes. I had blocked out that memory for so long; seeing that man’s face again in my mind brought back every emotion I had felt that day.

I felt something on my leg and jumped, looking down to find Alexei’s hand resting on my thigh. I was surprised by how comfortable the gesture instantly made me, and I gave him a small smile. 

“How did you get out of the lab?” Joyce asked, reaching for another cigarette. 

“I quit complying. After that, anything they asked me to do I refused. Even small stuff, I wouldn’t do it anymore, I didn’t want to give them what they wanted. I told them I couldn’t do it anymore, that my powers were just gone. Of course, they didn’t believe me. They would beat me, throw me in an empty room for hours, refuse to feed me, but I’m stubborn. After a few weeks I guess they thought I wasn’t worth the trouble anymore, whether they believed I was powerless or not, and I was so naive I thought that they were going to call my dad for him to come get me.” I shook my head and sighed. 

“A man I had never met before came and pulled me from my room one night and led me out into the woods. I was so confused and scared, but I didn’t realize he had a gun until we were out there and he pointed it at my head. He said something like ‘I don’t want to do this, but he’ll kill me if I don’t’, and I cried and pleaded, I even ran but he caught me. That was when he actually put the barrel up against my temple, and I was sure I was going to die.” I took one last drag and put out my cigarette. 

“I didn’t even know what had happened when I felt the gun and the man fall to the ground, but my nose was bleeding so I knew I had done something without even meaning to. I think I gave him a heart attack because he just fell over, dead. I ran all the way home to my dad that night. I had been gone for six months.. I missed my twelfth birthday.” 

“Had your dad tried to find you?” Murray asked after he finished translating the last bit of my story to Alexei. 

“Yeah, he called the police and put up missing posters and everything, but they assumed I had been kidnapped and taken out of the state and most likely killed. He did his damnedest to find me, but people were starting to forget about it, believing I really had been kidnapped and killed. It was really hard on him, he didn’t have anyone left.”

“When I got home I told him everything that had happened, even about what I could do. He was so happy I was alright, but I was actually angry at him because I thought he knew I was there the whole time, which of course he didn’t. But when I told him about it something clicked for him, like he already had an idea of what was happening. That was when he told me about one part of my mom’s life he never spoke about before then or after.”

“MKUltra?” Eleven asked. I nodded, remembering that night as if it had just happened. 

“My dad told me my mom joined that right after they got married, going on LSD trips and getting fucked up. She had no idea until a little while after she joined that she was pregnant with me, but she stopped after she found out. They kept trying to get her to come back, and my dad said she got a funny feeling and started looking into it more. He ignored it, thinking it was her pregnancy brain making her paranoid, but he still kept everything she found. There were cases she looked into of three other children being stolen at birth whose mothers had done the same thing she had with that group. My dad said she had been so scared as her due date came closer, but he thought it was all a load of bull.” I took a couple deep breaths before finishing, staring down at my wrecked nails. 

“My mom went into labor a full month early, she started hemorrhaging and died right after they got me out. The last thing she said to my dad was ‘keep her safe.’ Surprisingly, nothing ever happened until I got kidnapped. All the others were taken at birth, but not me. My dad never could figure it out, but he thought she must have given them a fake name to begin with and not told them she was married to protect herself from the start. So then when she had me early they never knew and being that she died they probably couldn’t figure it out anyway.”

“The next day, we told the police a fake story about me being kidnapped by an older couple and taken to Wisconsin but that they brought me back when they were done with me. They looked into it, but of course they never found anything. My dad kept my return out of the papers and we just laid low. I don’t know if the lab really thought I was dead like they wanted, but they never came looking for me again. My dad enrolled me in homeschool and we lived our life on our own. He died in a car accident two years ago. I still mostly keep to myself, but it’s been better since I heard the lab had to close.”

“I’m sorry about your father, but you can thank us for the closing of the lab!” Murray exclaimed with a smug look of satisfaction. “Those bastards had it coming. But I’m afraid the threat of Russians in Hawkins is real. That’s part of what we were dealing with last night.”

“I think it’s your turn to explain that then,” I said, picking up my pack of cigarettes and leaning back on the couch, ready to listen. 

All three of them shared in the storytelling, beginning with Eleven’s escape from the Hawkins Lab a year and a half earlier, and their struggles in the Upside Down world and closing the gate between that world and ours. As crazy as that sounded, what they explained seemed plausible with what I knew of the lab, but I was glad to not have experienced it.

Then they began to explain what brought them to last night, the Russians, including Alexei, coming to Hawkins to reopen the gate, giving someone called the Mind Flayer the ability to communicate with our world and build an army to defeat Eleven so she couldn’t close the gate again. Despite the fact that the majority of those who were fighting were children, they managed to defeat the monster at the mall and infiltrate the Russians, with Alexei’s help, to blow up their machine. They noted two casualties on their end, one being Eleven’s adopted father who I recognized as the Chief of Police. Through it all, it seemed for now that we were safe, or at least more so than we had been. 

“Holy shit. To think all that was going on right under everyone’s noses.” I said, letting everything sink in. I still didn’t fully understand, but I resigned to the fact that I probably wouldn’t anyway.

“You have no idea.” Joyce said, sighing. We sat in silence for a moment while we all thought of what to do from here.

“My powers are gone now. I can’t- I can’t use them anymore.” Eleven looked frustrated with herself and on the verge of tears. “Has that ever happened to you?”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “But I’m sure it has to do with the trauma and stress you went through. That’s a lot for someone to deal with. Just try to relax and when you’re ready I’m sure they’ll come back.” She looked slightly more reassured than she had before. 

“Alright, well,” Murray clapped his hands together as he stood up. “Thank you for keeping Alexei safe last night, but I don’t want to overstay our welcome, being that he is an enemy to the United States as well as the Soviets now.” Murray turned and spoke to Alexei.

“_It’s time to go, we can go get supplies at my house before finding another location that’s not compromised_.” Alexei looked over to me and a pit formed in my stomach. I didn’t want him to go, but I couldn’t think of any excuse to keep him with me any longer. Alexei, however, didn’t stand. 

“_Murray, I could stay here. It’s safe, and she can protect me. You even said your house is exposed_.” I wasn’t sure what he was saying, but it almost sounded like he was disagreeing with Murray. 

Murray took a second to process before he laughed and looked from Alexei to me. 

“What did the two of you get into last night?” He asked trying not to burst into hysterics, but I understood what he was implying.

“Excuse me?” I asked defensively.

“He wants to stay! There must be a reason!” The pit in my stomach turned to butterflies; so I wasn’t the only one who didn’t want to be apart. 

“Well, I can assure you it’s not that! But..” I tried not to sound too eager. “He can stay if he wants. I can protect him, as you already know.” Murray continued to look with a wondrous expression from me to Alexei, and when he spoke again it was to Alexei.

“_Did you fuck her last night? It’s alright if you did I just-_“

“_What?! No!_” Alexei defended while Murray chuckled. Something told me I knew exactly what they were saying. 

“Well, Murray,” Joyce interjected. “You did say that your place is compromised, maybe it’s best for him to stay here while you figure your things out and help Alexei become a citizen.” 

He seemed to think it over for a minute before responding.

“Fine, if it’s what they want.” He said as he shrugged. The butterflies jumped up to my throat as a nervous excitement washed over me. “But he is not to leave this house at all, and no one is to know he’s here.”

“Of course,” I replied. Murray turned back to Alexei.

“_Look, I don’t know if I believe that you didn’t fuck her, but maybe you should since she’s letting you stay._” Alexei made to interject, but Murray held up his hands and stopped him. “_No leaving, and no talking to anyone but her._” Alexei nodded his head, and I assumed Murray was laying down the rules for him. 

“I would suggest picking up a Russian-English dictionary and some clothes. I’ll call you with updates and get him fixed up as soon as possible. Oh, and he loves cherry Slurpees.”

“Everything will be fine, Murray. He’ll be safe with me.” I gave him a reassuring smile and we all said our goodbyes. I gave them my number and Joyce gave me hers in case I needed anything. It turned out that she didn’t live too far away from me.

Once they left I decided I might as well start getting things for Alexei while he was staying with me. Glancing at the clock I saw that it was already 11:00 am. It honestly hadn’t even felt like we had been talking for nearly three hours. I grabbed my keys and turned back to face him. 

“I’m going to get more food and clothes for you.” I knew he couldn’t understand me, but he still gave me an adorable grin as I spoke. I walked past him to the TV, grabbing the remote and turning it on. I handed it over and motioned for him to sit on the couch. “I’ll be back soon.” 

Walking to the door, I turned and saw Alexei watching me leave. He gave me one last smile and a wave before I walked out the door, locking it behind me.

First things first, he needed some real clothes.


	6. A Friend In Need

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sooooo sorry I haven't updated in a while! I've been super busy with work and school and have had absolutely no time to write or upload, which is why I'm now sitting here editing at midnight. This work hasn't been forgotten or anything of the sort and I hope to be able to update on a more regular basis moving forward. Enjoy :)

My first stop was at the local grocery store since it was the closest to my house. I wasn’t in desperate need of food, so I just picked up a few extra things to be sure I would have enough food for two people until Sunday when I did my regular shopping. I managed to be in and out in under twenty minutes remaining largely unnoticed. 

Knowing that there was no longer a mall to shop at, I headed straight for Fredrickson’s, a small local shop on main street that had somehow managed to survive the competition from Starcourt. It wasn’t fancy by any means, but they sold men’s clothes at unbeatable prices. It had been where my dad had gotten most of his clothes; flannels and t-shirts, jeans, thick coats with fur inside, brown work boots. I could picture it all so clearly on him still.

A few weeks after he died I had finally managed to pack most of it away and donate it, but I kept a few things for myself. When it was cold and snowy you could still catch me wearing his favorite flannel jacket with the pop-up collar and one of his baseball hats. It never felt right to me to give away everything that reminded me of him, he was always going to be a part of my life. 

As I pulled into a spot I tore off my hoodie that I had walked out of the house in. It may have been a cool 70 inside, but outside was at least 90 and climbing. My white shirt underneath had a small stain on the side, but I could’ve cared less. 

The last time I had been inside Fredrickson’s had been with my dad. We had gone to pick out some new shirts I was buying him for his birthday. Less than two months after that day he was already gone.

I took a shaky breath and jumped out of the truck before I could think anymore about it. Today I was here for Alexei, not to wallow in my own sorrow. I had a fleeting thought as I walked through the door that he may not like what I was going to pick out, but he was going to have to learn to like it. An enemy of two different countries didn’t have much room to argue over clothes. I smiled to myself as the thought came to me. 

“Scarlet?” A voice from the back said as the door bell chimed behind me.

“Hi, Mr. Fredrickson.” I smiled as the old man stepped into view. He was just as I remembered him; short, stout, and a full bushy mustache that took up most of the lower half of his face. The only difference was the noticeable amount of grey hair spread over his head. 

“Why, it’s been nearly two years since I’ve seen you in here! Welcome back!” He beamed at me while I awkwardly looked around at the clothes racks surrounding us. 

“Thank you. I’m glad to see you’re doing well.” A dark green flannel caught my eye that I thought would look good on Alexei.

“Oh, I was never intimidated by that shopping center, and now I don’t ever have to worry about it again!” He let out a hearty laugh and I couldn’t help but smirk.

“I heard about that, what a shame.” If only he knew what had really happened.

“A shame to some, but that’s why I’m still in business. Now, what can I help you find today? Shopping for someone special?” I could hear the anticipation in his voice and his question caught me off guard. 

“Oh, no! I, uh, my friend is in need and I’ve offered to help.” It wasn’t a complete lie, I just left out most of the truth. 

“Might I know this friend?” He asked, and I shook my head.

“No, he’s new to the area.”

“Of course! Well, what size is he?” It dawned on me that I had no idea. Thinking back, Alexei seemed to be about the same height my dad had been, but he was a bit stockier. I thought back to earlier that morning when he had come out in nothing but a towel but quickly pushed the thought away.

“Um, I don't know his actual size.. he’s about as tall as my dad was, but not as small as he was. I’m sorry.”

“That’s alright,” Mr. Fredrickson said. “Let me go back in our records book and see what size we logged your father as. Tedious work, logging customer sizes, but it comes in handy!” As he walked towards the backroom I remembered that was one of the things my dad liked about this store; they made you feel welcome and at home. 

When Mr. Fredrickson returned, he led me to a section of racks that held a few sizes up from my dad. 

“Now, you’ll have to use your best judgement since you know what your friend looks like, but I bet his size is one of these.”

“Thank you so much, I really appreciate it Mr. Fredrickson.”

“”It’s no problem at all. Just let me know when you’re ready and I’ll ring you up.” With that he walked away and left me to pick out clothes for Alexei.

I settled on only two flannels, one being the green one I saw earlier, a few t-shirts, a couple pairs of jeans and shorts, and a pair of sweats. On my way to the register I also picked up a pack of socks and boxers. After I paid I once again thanked Mr. Fredrickson for all his help.

“Don’t you worry about it Miss Harlan. Just don’t be a stranger.”

“I won’t.” I smiled as I opened the door, meaning it. “Have a good day!”

“Same to you!”

I put the bags in the passenger seat of my truck and began walking down the street towards the movie theatre. There used to be a bookstore a few blocks down but I had no idea if it was still in business, let alone if they would even have a Russian-English dictionary. Luckily, the sign on the door was flipped to show they were open and I stepped inside.

Once upon a time this had been my favorite store in town. I had always loved books and I read anything I could get my hands on. The smell of paper and bindings engulfed me as I made my way inside. It was all too familiar. I still loved books but found less and less time to read as I got older. Being back in a book store made me want to spend all afternoon picking out new favorites to take home with me, but I quickly remembered what I was here for.

“Can I help you?” A young woman popped her head up from behind the counter where she had been sorting through a box of books. 

“Yes, actually.” I replied as I walked to stand before her. “I’m looking for a Russian-English dictionary.” The woman’s eyebrows rose slightly and she gave me a quizzical look. “Purely educational.” I finished, feeling slightly uncomfortable. 

“Funny you should ask, I actually just saw one in this box a little bit ago.” She stood and began looking through the piles of books around her. “Here it is.” She picked up a small, thick black book with a red border around the words “The Oxford Russian-English Dictionary”. She handed it over to me and I absentmindedly flipped through the pages.

“It’s got some markings in it from whoever had it before, but you can still read everything.” I was beginning to notice that; arrows pointing to words and circled phrases in blue ink.

“That’s fine,” I told her.

“You can just keep it. It was donated here and I’ll donate it to you for your ‘educational purposes’.” She smirked as she went back to sorting through the box.

“Are you sure?” I asked, not really wanting to push my luck.

“Yeah,” she waved her hand. “You’re probably the only person in town that would want it. It’s fine.”

“Thank you, I appreciate it.”

“No problem. It’s funny how some things work out.” She smiled then went back to the books as I walked out of the store and into the heat.

I wondered why she had let me have the book and what she must have thought, but those thoughts were quickly pushed from my mind as I opened the book again. Walking back to my truck, I flipped through the pages slower than before, looking at what was marked throughout the book. Most of what I saw circled were random words; bowl, keys, phone number, sunglasses. There was no connection or pattern between them.

I was so immersed in the book that I almost walked straight into a light pole. Looking around me in a daze, I noticed that I had actually walked a few feet past my truck without even realizing it. I quickly walked back and hopped up into the driver’s seat, placing the book in a clothing bag. I then pulled out of my spot and headed towards my last stop: 7/11.

The drive across town was quick and when I arrived I pulled up to a gas pump. I left the nozzle to fill up my tank while I went inside to get the last few things. Standing before the coolers I pulled out a twelve pack of Bud Light. There was no better ice-breaker than miraculously healing a gunshot wound, but I figured having a few beers and trying to bridge the language barrier between Alexei and I might make for an interesting night.

As I headed for the counter I passed the Slurpee machine and immediately remembered what Murray had said about cherry Slurpees, so I stopped and got one for Alexei. Once at the counter, I paid for the beer, gas, Slurpee, and two packs of cigarettes before finally heading home.

I was surprised to find that I became more anxious the closer to home I got. What if Alexei wasn’t there? What if the Russians found him? What if he didn’t like the clothes I bought? My hands were shaking as I pulled into my driveway at 1:15 but I headed inside with my bags and the beer. The door was still locked, which was a good sign, and as I walked inside I saw Alexei sitting on the couch watching cartoons. Relief washed over me just knowing he was still safe. He turned when he heard the door open and a smile spread across his face. He walked over as I placed the bags on the counter and put the beer in the fridge. 

“Here,” I said, handing over the two bags with his clothes as well as the Slurpee. “I hope it fits, if not I can take it back and get other sizes.” I knew he had no idea what I was saying, but I hoped he was able to understand the context. He smiled and took a few sips before peering into the bags.

“_Thank you so much, I don’t know how I can repay you._” I smiled up at him having no idea what he said. “_I’ll go change so you can have your clothes back._” He turned and walked back into my room with his clothes and the Slurpee. I figured he was going to change and a silent panic ran through me again that he may not like the clothes. Taking a deep breath, I told myself it wasn’t a big deal and that there shouldn’t be a problem as long as they fit. Instead of worrying, I took the opportunity to put the few groceries I had bought away. 

As I walked into the living room to wait for Alexei I suddenly remembered our clothes in the washer from that morning that I had completely forgotten about. I walked over to put them in the dryer to find that the washing machine was empty. I looked in the dryer and saw that the clothes were at the bottom of the machine and still warm. Alexei must have switched them while I was gone. I smiled to myself and began folding the clothes, leaving them on top of the washer to put away later.

Right as I was finishing up Alexei opened my door and stepped out. I turned and my breath caught silently in my throat. He was wearing a pair of jeans and the green flannel, still holding his cherry Slurpee. I took a few seconds to look him over before either of us spoke. The shirt fit him perfectly and hugged just right on the curves of his arms and torso. From what I could tell the jeans also looked good, and for a second I wished he would turn around. I pushed the thought from my head and let my smile break through.

“_It all fits perfectly. I really can’t thank you enough_.” He returned my smile and all that I could think about was how handsome he was.

“You look great.” We stood there awkwardly smiling at each other before I broke eye contact and looked down at the ground, feeling a heat rise up to my cheeks. I couldn’t understand why I was acting like a high schooler with a crush. He needed to adjust to a normal life not controlled by the Soviets and not have his host act like a mess around him. We didn’t even speak the same language. 

Yet.

I noticed in his other hand that he was holding a book; the dictionary. He saw my gaze fall to it and he held it up.

“_Maybe we could try to get to know each other better?_” He raised his eyebrows and I assumed that he wanted to maybe try and communicate. There was no doubt that I wanted to try and have a conversation with him, but I was also beginning to feel self-conscious about how I looked. I knew that I really needed a shower after the previous night and there had been no time that morning. 

“How about I go shower and then we play twenty questions?” He gave me an expectant look having no idea what I said, so I took the book from him and flipped until I found the English word for shower with the Russian word next to it. I pointed it out to him and then pointed to myself, seeing a look of understanding come over his face. He nodded and I closed the book, handing it back to him. 

He walked back over and sat on the couch with his Slurpee while I went into my room and shut the door. 

“_I’ll just be here waiting.. by myself._”

I thought I heard Alexei say something after I closed the door, but I couldn’t be sure so I pushed the thought from my mind and walked into my bathroom, already excited for what was to come later in trying to talk with Alexei.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know there wasn’t a whole lot with Alexei in this chapter, but just wait til next chapter :)


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